JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES MORE THAN $376 MILLION IN AWARDS TO PROMOTE PUBLIC SAFETY

BILLINGS – The Department of Justice today announced that it has awarded more than $376 million in grant funding to enhance state, local and tribal law enforcement operations and reinforce public safety efforts in jurisdictions across the United States. State, tribal and local agencies in Montana will receive a total of $1,236,380 to support public safety activities. The awards were made by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs.

“Crime and violence hold families, friends and neighborhoods hostage, and they rip communities apart,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan. “These programs help restore the health and safety of crime-ravaged communities by supporting prevention activities, aiding in the apprehension and prosecution of perpetrators, facilitating appropriate sentencing and adjudication, and providing communities and their residents the means for recovery and healing.”

The awards announced today support an array of crime-fighting initiatives, including the quarter-billion dollar Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grants Program, which funds public safety efforts in 929 state, local and tribal jurisdictions. Funding also supports sex offender registration and notification, law enforcement-based victim services, the testing of sexual assault kits, and programs designed to address youth with sexual behavioral problems. Other awards will focus on wrongful convictions, intellectual property enforcement, innovative prosecution strategies and the safety and effectiveness of corrections systems.

“I am pleased that 11 of Montana’s state, tribal and local law enforcement agencies will be receiving these grants to support public safety, including drug task forces around the state that are working hard to reduce meth related crime. These federal awards provide critical funding to help our law enforcement partners make our communities safe,” U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

The following Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grants were awarded to the following agencies in the District of Montana:

Montana Board of Crime Control, $914,034; City of Great Falls, $26,189; City of Missoula, $66,788; City of Havre, $10,372; Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, $22,247; City of Billings, $84,717; Flathead County, $28,208; City of Helena, $43,790; City of Kalispell, $10,279; Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, $12,672; and City-County of Butte-Silver Bow, $17,084.

Information about the programs and awards announced today is available here. For more information about OJP awards, visit the OJP Awards Data webpage.

The Office of Justice Programs, directed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan, provides federal leadership, grants, training and technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, assist victims and enhance the rule of law by strengthening the criminal and juvenile justice systems. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

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